Forest Shadows. David Laing
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Forest Shadows
David Laing
First Published 2012 by JoJo Publishing
This edition published 2018 by Woodslane Press
© David Laing
All rights reserved. No part of this printed or video publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electrical, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher and copyright owner.
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National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry
| Author: | Laing, David. |
| Title: | Forest Shadows / David Laing |
| ISBN: | 9780987497062 (ePub) |
| Edited by | Harris, Ormé |
About the Author
David Laing is a full-time writer who enjoyed a long career as a teacher and school principal in South Australia, the Northern Territory and Tasmania. As a schoolboy he played league football for the Port Adelaide A-grade side, and during his teaching training semester vacations, he was employed in a variety of part-time jobs such as serving petrol, forestry work and fruit picking. He draws inspiration for his characters and intriguing Young Adult stories from his life’s experiences and the many people, including Aboriginal children and adults, he has met along the way.
Forest Shadows is the second book of a trilogy, which will soon be followed by the third book, Forest Secrets. He has toured with Forest Spirit, the first book in the trilogy , both in Tasmania and on the mainland, presenting at schools, to adult groups and at bookshops and has been interviewed on radio stations such as the ABC and Radio SSE.
David Laing lives with his wife, Wendy, and faithful dog, Jesse, in beautiful Deloraine in Tasmania.
Other books by this author:
Forest Spirit
A Tumble in Time
Author website: www.davidlaingauthor.com
Acknowledgements
I couldn’t be any more sincere when I say thanks to my editor, Ormé, who was a delight to work with. Her sage advice was always noted and taken on board. Thanks also to Barry and Jo of JoJo Publishing, who gave me a start with my first novel, and for all their help ever since. It’s always good to hear from fellow authors and this time my thanks go out to T.D. McKinnon of Terra Nullius fame; your insights, opinions and encouragement were much appreciated. Whenever I have a problem with IT, I call on my wife, Wendy, to fix it and she does. Thanks.
For my Scottish family
Chapter One
THURSDAY NIGHT
Wu Han stood in the doorway of his hut, staring into the night. Something was wrong. ‘It should not be like this, Po-Yee,’ he whispered to his Siamese cat that was sitting by his side. ‘Something very bad happening.’
Arms folded and hands inside the wide, flowing sleeves of his purple gown, he watched for a sign. Anything. He shivered as he felt the first stabbing prickles of panic. He was certain. Some inexplicable thing, something bad, was near.
The wild animals had known this, too. Like a wisp of smoke, they’d disappeared. The animals had, over the years, come to make Wu’s place their second home. It was their place of freedom where they were safe — from each other, from all predators. It was the law, Wu Han’s law. Yet something had frightened them … some shadowy thing.
With Po-Yee following closely behind, he stepped outside, trying to see through the darkness, straining to hear any sound. There was nothing.
He made his way to the campfire that he’d lit earlier in the clearing between his hut and the surrounding forest. When the weather was fine, sitting by the fire with Po-Yee on his lap was a ritual with Wu. One he enjoyed. Its warmth and smoky fragrance were a comfort.
Not now.
He looked down at Po-Yee. She was making rasping sounds from somewhere in the back if her throat like a baby choking. ‘Peace not come tonight, Po-Yee. Yin and Yang not balance, Yin too strong.’
The two forces meant everything to Wu Han. They were life itself. Yin warned of darkness, weakness, all that was bad. Yang was the opposite, meaning the bright, strong and good. From a very young age in China, he’d learned their meanings, learned that for harmony, good health and peace, the two needed to complement each other. ‘Yin very bad, Po-Yee. Yang weak.’
As if in reply, a sudden, choking smell surrounded him. His hands flew to his face, covering his nose and mouth. He tried to stifle his breathing, taking only short, shallow breaths. Then, through parted fingers, he searched for the source. He saw nothing, but it lingered, continuing to hang in the air like thick, choking treacle and with it had come a silence, a quiet that didn’t belong.
His eyes, wide and darting now, continued to search the surrounds. He saw only the shadowy outline of his hut and the dark shapes of the forest, quivering in the glow of the fire. ‘Why you hide from me? Why you not come out?’ he said.
Feeling a growing weakness in his legs, he lowered himself onto a handcrafted seat put together years ago. Then, with a rasping sound, not unlike a low growl, Po-Yee leaped onto his lap where she settled into a ball among the folds of his gown as though hiding. He stroked her still body, feeling her fear. He felt it, too, and like a wildfire, it was growing.
He continued to sit, staring into the embers of the fire, watching its changing shapes without really seeing. He leant over and picked up a tin mug and a billycan that he always kept by the fire’s side and with trembling hands he poured the hot liquid, a tea made from the leaves of a nearby sassafras tree. The ritual of tea making did little to quell his nerves.
The situation was getting worse.
The stink had grown stronger, continuing to waft up his nostrils and down his throat. He held back a cough and wiped a drop of spittle from his lips with the back of his hand. ‘It has started, Po-Yee,’ he said, suddenly realising the worst. ‘They have come.’
He searched the sky … listening for what he knew must be there. At last he heard it – a faint whickering sound.
It grew louder.
His grip around the mug loosened. It fell from his hands. Po-Yee snarled and leaped to the ground. She raced into the forest.
Wu, his eyes riveted to the northern sky, barely noticed the cat’s panic. He continued to stare and his eyes widened as the cause of the whickering came into view. It was a ball of light, pulsating and moving in his direction. He bit his lips and his body trembled.
He struggled to his feet as it drew near, the whickering now a steady throb. He shivered and his heart thumped against his chest as he continued to stare.
Moving slowly as though searching, the thing, as big as a house and flashing from red to orange, drew to a halt, hovering above his home like a hawk in the sky ready to strike.
‘Go away! Leave us!’ Wu Han shouted.